


Offcode

by YanOcon



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-18
Updated: 2019-01-17
Packaged: 2019-10-11 23:50:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,511
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17456621
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/YanOcon/pseuds/YanOcon
Summary: A player... And the played...How far can a friendship born between two opposites go...?Is it all just a game...? Is it real...? How thin this line can be...?...This next experiment......will test those two out......heh......v̨̰̕͞e̴̮͚̫͟ry̥̠̗͝͞ ̶̕͠i̸̟̟̞͢n̨t̨̠͠e̩̭̠ŗ̛͝e̝s̛͓̦t̨̲̗i̝ṉ̜͕҉͝g̞̮͍.̙͠.͏̷.͝...





	1. EXPERIMENT

_“Aaand... there! Done!”_

As the text editor in the laptop closed down, Yan laid back in his chair, stretching his arms and legs. After a extremely tirying hour, the college essay he needed to do was done and he could finally relax.

_“Well, since now I don't have anything else to do, maybe I can finish it now...”_ \- he thought to himself, while double-clicking the heart icon in the desktop. He was ready to face the final boss on yet another Undertale pacifist run. It was his third one, and he loved each one of them...

Yan was focused on the screen at that moment. He already had dinner and was back from the college about two hours ago. He studied at night, in a college near the exit of the city. It wasn't far away from his home, so he used to have dinner after 10PM. Yan lived with his parents, and didn't work, but was always trying to help everyone in every way he could. His dad worked at the city hall, and his mom was a music teacher. Yan himself was studying to become a teacher, and dreamed about one day having his own school.

The screen went white. The player defeated the final boss and destroyed the barrier once again.

*** That filled him with DETERMINATION...**

  
Yan learned about Undertale a year ago, but he only got the game two months before. He was amazed that even after a year of spoilers, the game still managed to surprise him and make him laugh. Playing games on the computer wasn't on his list of “favorite things to do”. He preferred to play games on his console and on his phone, but Undertale changed that. Ever since he bought it, he went crazy about it and everything related to it. So he knew all about the different timelines and possibilities that the game offered. He told himself he'd NEVER do a genocide run, since he knew that doing that would corrupt his game, and he didn't want that.

All the characters were facing towards the sun. They were free.

  
_“Ok, done. I should go sleep now, it's late...”_ \- Yan said to himself. The player hold down the ESC key, ready to close the game and turn off the computer.

**BUT IT REFUSED...**

  
_“Huh...? Why is it taking this long to close? Did it crash?”_

The player tried again...

**BUT IT REFUSED AGAIN...**

  
_“Ok, that's enough...”_

The player hit CTRL+ALT+DEL, bringing the task manager up, and tried to force close the game...

_But it failed..._

  
As the player closed the task manager and attempted to hit the RESTART button, the screen suddenly turned white...

...

 

❄☟✋💧 ☠☜✠❄ ☜✠🏱☜☼✋💣☜☠❄  
💧☜☜💣💧  
✞☜☼✡  
✞☜☼✡  
✋☠❄☜☼☜💧❄✋☠☝

 

📬📬📬 

 

...

  
A bright green light warped through the power cord of the computer and when it reached the power brick, it went through its blue LED, emitting a glaring flash for a few seconds.

When it faded, Yan almost screamed out loud (he held up because of the time). Laid down on the floor, unconciously, was...

sans...

  
_“WHAT? Am I dreaming? It must be... this is just on my head... right? There's no way he is re... … al... ...”_

He stopped when he looked at his computer screen. It was back to normal, but the game window was black and had something written on it...

...

 

🕈☟✌❄ 👎⚐ ✡⚐🕆 ❄🕈⚐ ❄☟✋☠😐✍

 

...

  
_“... no... it's true... sans is here...”_ \- the thought terrified Yan. How could this even be possible?

Sans was still unconcious, so that gave time for the player to analyze him. For the most part, he was the same, but strangely his jacket wasn't blue as usual. Instead, it resembled the color of the glare that ran through the power cord. A light-green, almost as the leaves in a tree. It reminded Yan about the text in the old computers he usually sees in videos...

**… the color of code …**

  
_“ugh... where am i...?”_ \- said Sans with a lazy voice... He woke up...

At first, Sans was confused. It seems like he didn't know what happened. He looked to the sides, analyzing the room trying to identify it. He failed.

_“um... Are you okay?”_

_“yeah... i am... thanks for aski...”_ \- he stopped when he looked at Yan, in shock...

_“HEEYY!!! who are you??? where are the others???”_  
\- Sans screamed, running away on his back, hitting the wall and pushing himself against it. He was panicking.

_“Oh, right... My name is Yan, and you are in my room. So... I think your name is Sans, right?”_

_“how do you know my name? where are the others? what did you do to them?”_ \- Sans was talking out loud and harsh. He looked mad.

_“Let's just say that... I know a lot about you... and you know me too... well... not personally...”_ \- Yan was sweating... How would he explain to Sans that he lived in a world that didn't exist? And all of his friends were inside a computer? How would he react when he discovered that he himself wasn't real?

_“hey, you didn't answer my last question... i'll give you another chance... answer me or you'll regret it”_

* sweating intensifies  
_“... … um... … how can i put this in words... …”_

*** The player tried to think of something to say...**  
*** He failed.**

  
_“that's it. bud, you're gonna have a b... ...”_ \- Sans stopped. He started to sweat, he looked startled and uneasy. -  
_“... wh-what... what happened to... my... powers...? i can't use them...”_

Sans looked at Yan... worried...

_“wh-what have y-you... done to me? what are you?”_

_"..."_ \- Yan felt his sins crawling on his back... It was the time to answer Sans...

_“I haven't done anything to you... You appeared here suddenly... I don't know how this was even possible... You couldn't... You aren't supposed to... You shouldn't...”_

_**“Y O U    S H O U L D N ' T    B E   R E A L . . .”** _

  
Sans took a step back, terrified. What did he mean with “You shouldn't be real”?

_“You seem a little unsettled about what I said... Maybe you felt a chill run down your spine? Heh...”_ \- The player was looking at Sans with a mischievous smile on his face...

Sans was unsettled. Did Yan make a joke with him? Or was it a threat? Either way, it wasn't the right moment.  
Yan stopped.

_“Sorry if I startled you, that wasn't the intention... I thought that since you like puns, you'd laugh... That would make this whole situation a little lighter...”_ \- Yan said, with a sad smile in his face. A sincere tone in his voice.

_“um... don't sweat about that, pal... i'm just trying to understand what's happening, i'm totally lost... how do you know i like puns? do we know each other?”_

_“Yeah, I know you... We've met before, but not face-to-face like that... Actually, we've met like that... but you may know me by another name... since, well... 'i am the legendary fartmaster', heh heh heh...”_ \- Yan started to laugh... Sans blinked a few times before snapping out of that confusion moment.

_“wait... did you just said my secret codework? no one knows about it, except....... …. the kid..... ….”_

Sans stopped again... He started to understand what was happening. And he didn't like it...

_“are... are you... Frisk?”_

_“No... I'm not Frisk... and yet... at the same time... I am... As I said before... My name is Yan..._

_**. . . I   A M   T H E   P L A Y E R** _ _**.** _ _**. .”** _

  
Yan was talking in a calm, serious and cold tone... Sans's thoughts started to become a reality...

_“so it's you... the anomaly is you... you're the one responsible for the resets in the timeline...”_

_“Don't call me that, I'm not an anomaly... As i said, I am the player... Come on Sans, I know that you're a smart guy... You already understood...”_ \- Yan said. Sans flinched.

_“I heard that code because you told it to me... I know about the lab behind your house in Snowdin because I went in there... I know about how you gave up on trying to go home because you said that in our dinner... And I know all that because I am the player... I bought it... I played it... Sans... It's hard for me to say that... but..._

_**YOU LIVE IN A GAME...**_  
_**YOU SHOULDN'T BE REAL BECAUSE YOU'RE PART OF A GAME...**_  
_**A GAME I PLAYED...”**_

  
Sans's expression was empty. He felt like someone had taken his SOUL and smashed it with a sledgehammer. Everything he knew, everyone he met and lived with, all of that... Nothing was real... That explained the resets, the fear of constantly going back in time... reliving those same 6 hours... It was just a few times, but that still hurts...

_“... a... game...? so... everything i lived thus far... wasn't real? all of the people i know... toriel... undyne... alphys... asgore...”_ \- Sans took a deep and depressing breath - _“... my brother... me… all of us are nothing more than pieces in a game?”_

_“Technically yes... sorry, I didn't want to cause this on you... After all of that, you may think that I don't care about you or your friends... but... Observing your lifes really helped me understand myself... So... I want to help you.”_ \- said Yan.

_“why even bother... it's all just a game... it's not real... it doesn't matter...”_ \- Sans replied, looking down with empty eyes.

Yan couldn't believe on what he just heard... Sans was once again, giving up on going back to his home because, in his vision, it didn't matter...

_“DON'T SAY THAT!!! Sans, you should never give up... Because there are a lot of people that really care about you... being real or not!!! And don't even try to argue with me!!! We will find out why you lost your powers and I will return you home! That's a promise!!!”_

Sans looked into Yan's eyes... Those deep brown eyes staring at him, with a sparkle he would never forget about it... That was definitely the kid he knew and liked to prank with. The same kid that made his brother love the humans, the same one that saved the life of Undyne and helped Mettaton reach his dream viewer milestone, the same one that helped Alphys with his secret... the same one that destroyed the barrier and freed the monsters from the Underground...  
Those sparkly eyes never ceased to amaze him... And even now, in front of the anomaly he was searching for, he still felt the same about it... That feeling was comforting...

_“hey kid... you know how i am with promises... so don't even think about breaking this 'bone'... i... … i believe you...”_

The player was happy. It was still a mystery what happened... But both Sans and Yan were willing to uncover this as soon as possible... but... it was late...

_“WHOA, look at the time!!! It's too late!!! We should go sleep... Please Sans, stay here in my room until tomorrow... I think you shouldn't go far from me since... well... you are a skeleton... and everyone else here is a human...”_ \- said Yan.

_“don't sweat about that, bud... you're not going to get rid of me anytime soon... g'night...”_ \- Sans said.

Yan turned off the computer and the light, and laid down on his bed...

*** The promise to help an old friend to go home...**  
*** It filled you with DETERMINATION.**


	2. VESSEL

_What_ _can I do? What did those words mean? Yan was wandering through the snow-covered trees in Snowdin, paying attention to his surroundings. He was trying to decypher the meaning behind the incident. As he walked through the forest, he noticed that some trees were twitching in a strange way, sometimes glowing with a green-colored glare, and the wind was starting to freeze his skin… It was painful…_

 

_… … green glare… …green jacket… … green symbols… …_

 

**… … …**

  
_“and i once thought i was the lazy dude…”_

Yan opened his eyes in shock, jolting himself awake…

He looked to his side, only to see Sans, looking at him impatiently.

_“Um… Good morning…???”_

_“it’s almost 11'o clock…”_ \- Sans said, perplexed by how long the player had been sleeping.

_“Sorry… When did you wake up?”_

_“about one hour ago… your mother came to call you for breakfast… and if i’m not wrong, she’s still waiting you…”_

_“Her name is May… wait… Did she see you?”_ \- Yan asked, worried…

_“doesn’t look like… and i was right at the middle of the room…”_ \- Sans said, shrugging.

_“Maybe no one else can see you… That’s good… Well… I think I should go have my breakfast… I’ll get something for you too…”_

_“thanks bud…”_

Yan stood up and went to the kitchen. His mother was waiting, rearranging her schedule on the phone.

_“Good morning…”_ \- he said in a slightly dizzy voice, probably because of how much he slept.

_“Good morning… Did you sleep well?”_ \- She asked, raising her head to stare at her son, but immediately cutting the question...

_“Well… I think i don’t have to ask…”_ \- She said, winking her eye. That made Yan blush, embarassed by how much he overslept.

The player sat down by his mother's side, and Sans sat down by his side as well. While Yan was eating, Sans noticed that his host was happily joking with his mother. Both were eating together, and laughing at puns and jokes their family were sharing online…

_He looked happy._

  
After breakfast, Yan went to the front room, where he grabbed a chair an sat down. There was a digital piano there, alongside a small couch. Sans sat in the couch as the player turned the piano on and selected an instrument.

_“Everyday after breakfast, I like to play some music here… I hope you don’t mind hearing me mess up a lot…”_ \- Yan said, giggling.

_“why would you mess up? go ahead, i’m all 'ears…”_ \- Sans replied, sliding down on the couch lazily. The player smiled at that scene, remembering how lazy his guest could be.

Yan turned to the piano and started to play a song. His fingers were sliding through the keys, almost as if they were dancing along with the calm music, that felt strangely familiar to Sans. The melody was soothing, almost as if it was starting to tell a story to a child…

_Once upon a time…_

While he was playing, May was at the kitchen, humming that song, looking away. At this point, she heard it everyday, and that melody always brought her a feeling of serenity and harmony. She turned over and glanced at her son, but stopped moving as soon as she did that. She could see by his side a very faint figure, almost invisible, with it’s eyes closed, hearing the song.

_“...maybe It’s just my imagination…”_ \- She said to herself, but Yan was able to hear it. He stopped playing and looked at her.

The figure disappeared from her sight.

_“What did you say, mom?”_ \- Yan asked her.

_“Nothing, I thought I saw someone by your side…”_

Yan flinched. Was she referring to Sans?

_“Um… but… t-there is… n-no one else here…”_ \- Yan started sweating.

_“Maybe someone was hearing you play, since… well… that music is so beautiful… Where is it from?”_

_“It's from a game…”_ \- Yan said. That line made Sans’s smile disappear instantly.

_“Oh my God, why do you always play these songs from games? I know they’re good, but there’s so much more that you can play…”_ \- May said, annoyed.

_“I like them… that’s why I play them… And I know there are a lot more songs to play, but I like to start with these…”_

_“Okay… That was just a suggestion…”_ \- May said, with a sad tone in her voice…

*** The player felt his guilt weighning on his neck…**

  
_“… sorry… … … I love you…”_ \- Yan said, regretting his previous ACTion…

_“That’s ok, I love you too…”_ \- May said, with a smile on her face forgiving her son. - _“You can continue playing… I was enjoying it… And I think your 'guest’ was, too…”_

Sans didn’t understand. Why was she acting as if that was something completely normal? An invisible guest… Wouldn’t she be worried about it, or even for her son?

_“hey… why did she act like that? wouldn’t she be worried about you?”_

_“No… We believe that there are souls that need help in the world, and some of them just wanders around, in search for peace. And she knows that I’m fine… I know how to take care of myself...”_ \- Yan said, winking to Sans.

Yan started to play another tune. This one was more familiar to Sans, he actually knew the composer… Napstablook. He remembered that the ghost had spent weeks trying to get the melody and harmony done. It was released while the human was travelling the Underground, and the first one that downloaded it was Muffet… Sans remembered that she nicknamed that song…

_...Spider Dance…_

Sans closed his eyes, feeling a wave of emotions invading his SOUL. He couldn't tell what exactly they were, but he was feeling something different. His memories... his feelings... He was feeling happy, for the first time since he found out about the whole game thing.

That sensation was odd. Almost like it filled him with something he had lost... Almost as if he was turning back into what he was... but he wasn't filled enough...

Sans looked down, staring at himself. He was breathing slowly, as he stared at his jacket. The greenish binary code that covered his entire body was slowly being turned back into his normal blue, like drops of water filling up a large cup. A vessel, if you'd say...

His eyes were burning brightly, a large smile forming on his face.

_"...it's... coming back... i can feel it... filling me again..."_ \- he mumbled, low enough so that Yan couldn't hear him.

_“Hey Yan, don’t forget that today you’ll sleep in your grandma’s house! It’s saturday after all…”_ \- May said, making Yan stop playing.

_“Ok mom…”_ - Yan replied.

The feeling faded away... Sans sighed, still smiling. He understood what just happened, and couldn't wait to tell Yan about it.

Meanwhile Yan stared at the piano. He had the face covered in shadows, his eyes weren't visible. He mumbled to himself

_"...grandma’… …he's...her neighbor..."_

Sans looked at the player, and immediately felt a chill running down his spine. He shivered lightly, surprised by Yan's face.

_"...p-pal...? you okay there...?"_

His head turned to face Sans, his eyes became visible again and he was...smirking...

_"...never..been..better..."_

*** The player had an idea.**

 

*** The player knew who he’d ask help.**

 

*** The player was filled with DETERMINATION…**

 

**...**

  
Later that day, Yan and Sans were outside the other house. Sans didn’t know why they were there, though… The sunlight, while beautiful for Sans, was extremely hot… He was feeling his bones hurt, almost as if they were boiling…

_But that’s impossible... right...?_

  
_“um… pal… why are we here?”_ - Sans asked, sweating…

_“I think I know another person that may be able to see you… and… let me say… He’s very creative…”_ \- Yan replied, winking.

_“so… is he a doctor? or a scientist?”_ \- Sans asked with confidence…

_“No… Actually very far from that… You see, earlier my mom was able to see a hint of you, while she was hearing those songs… They are from your soundtrack, actually…”_ \- Yan smiled.

_“so they are from my… … … ugh... game…. that explains why they felt so familiar to me…”_ \- Sans said, sighing.

_“I didn’t play your theme because it is too complicated… But my friend… He is extremely obsessed with your world… Almost more than myself actually…”_ \- Yan said.

_“oh..? where is he?”_ \- Sans asked.

_“He’s as lazy as me… I already called him over… oh… wait, he’s coming… Please stay here for now…”_ \- Yan replied.

_“ok.”_ \- Sans nodded.

Yan entered his friend’s house, as he heard the door opening and closing… Sans could hear the conversation between the two…

_“Hi Yan, how are you today?”_

_“I’m fine, actually… but I need to show you someone… and I think you’ll go crazy when you see it…”_

_“Why?”_

_“Well… He’s someone we both know… and he’s not from… 'here’…._

_“Wow… Where is he???”_

_“HEY, COME OVER HERE…”_

Sans entered the yard of the boy’s house, sweating…

_“K… this is Sans… Sans, this is K…”_ - K was shocked…

_“… um… hi… nice to meet ya…”_

_“.. Yan… is he really…”_

_“Yes… he is 'THE’ Sans…”_

_“… …OMG… H-HI SANS… THIS IS AN HONOR… HOW DID YOU BECAME REAL??????”_ \- K was extremely excited and talking loudly… Sans flinched at the last sentence…

_“sorry, this whole 'i am not real’ talk still makes me feel veeery unconfortable… i don’t get why should anyone be honored to meet me, but… thanks kid…”_ \- Sans said.

_“Something weird happened yesterday, and I need your help to find out what was that… We need to help Sans go back to the game… can I count on you?”_ \- Said Yan to K.

_“But… How? I’m just 11!!!”_

_“You have time… and you know almost everything about Undertale… Two heads think better than one…”_

_“… When do we start?”_

*** The alliance between two friends to help another one…**

 

*** K and the player were filled with DETERMINATION.**


End file.
